Latest Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
FARMERS TO LOWER RATES FOR COLO. AUTO CUSTOMERS:
Mar 21 2005 // Farmers Insurance Group of Companies announced it will lower rates for its auto customers in the state of Colorado. Effective April 1, 2005, Farmers’ customers in Colorado will see a rate decrease that will average...
Operation Scorpion Nets Nine Suspects
Mar 21 2005 // Authorities arrested nine auto body shop owners and employees, charging them with various felony counts of insurance fraud following “Operation Scorpion,” a joint investigation by California Department of...
Calif. Trio Arrested for Auto Insurance Fraud
Mar 18 2005 // On March 16, investigators from the Fresno County Urban Organized Auto Insurance Fraud Task Force and officers from the Stockton Police Department arrested Amberjeet Kaur Gill (aka Amber Gill, Amber Jeet Kaur Gill,...
Mich. Lawmakers Pass Bill to Repeal State Helmet Law, According to AAA Michigan
Mar 17 2005 // Michigan lawmakers on Thursday passed Senate Bill 297, which repeals the state’s 36-year-old mandatory motorcycle helmet law. It is estimated that the repeal will result in 22 additional fatalities each year, along...
ABRA Auto Body & Glass Adds Mo. Franchise
Mar 16 2005 // ABRA Auto Body & Glass, a Minneapolis-based damaged vehicle repair company, announced the opening of its ninetieth repair center today. Located in Lee’s Summit, Mo., the franchise was awarded to Don Kahan, owner...
Mass. Auto Insurance Task Force Promises Reform Package by June
Mar 15 2005 // A task force appointed by Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney last spring has concluded that the state’s private passenger auto insurance system is heading for a crash and has promised to produce a legislative reform...
N.Y. Auto Industry Restarts Stalled Drive to Reform Vicarious Leasing Liability Law
Mar 14 2005 // Auto leasing interests in New York are renewing their battle against the state’s vicarious liability law that they say has demolished the car leasing industry in the state. The United Auto Workers (UAW), the New York...
St. Petersburg Family Arrested for Faking $85,000 Auto Accident Claim
Mar 14 2005 // A St. Petersburg, Fla. couple and a relative are facing felony insurance fraud charges after state investigators determined they fraudulently collected $39,000 from their insurance coverage stemming from a staged...
R&SA Confirms Plan to Sell U.S. Non-Standard Auto Unit
Mar 14 2005 // While the U.K.’s Royal & SunAlliance moved out of the red in 2004 (See IJ Web site March 10), the company is still committed to further reforms of its U.S. operations, R&SA-USA. It has already significantly...
Uninsured Driver Legislation Filed in Texas
Mar 14 2005 // State Representative Bill Callegari, Katy, filed House Bill 2573 to establish a motor vehicle financial responsibility program in Texas. According the House Media Services Division, HB 2573 is a version of a similar...
N.Y. Counties Receive Insurance Anti-Fraud Funds
Mar 10 2005 // New York Governor George E. Pataki has announced the recipients of $5.3 million in grants for programs to combat motor vehicle theft and insurance fraud in communities across the state. “These grants will help give...
Biker’s Choice of Motorcycle Reveals Taste in Body Art, Food and Employment Habits, Insurer Finds
Mar 10 2005 // What can one tell about a person by the kind of motorcycle they ride? Plenty, according to a recent countrywide online survey conducted by The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies, the number one seller of motorcycle...
Brothers Arrested in Auto Insurance Premium Scam
Mar 9 2005 // Carlos Vasquez-Marquez and Jose Miguel (Mike) Marquez, of Rancho Palos Verdes, have been arrested and charged with seven felony counts of grand theft. The arrests are the result of a 20-month investigation conducted by the...
Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett on Insurance Economics and 2004 Results
Mar 8 2005 // By Chairman Warren Buffett’s own admission, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. did not have one of its best years in 2004. Last year, Berkshire’s book-value gain of 10.5% fell short of the S&P 500 Index’s 10.9%...
Ga. Cracks Down On Uninsured Motorists: New Regulations In Effect April 1
Mar 8 2005 // Two new regulations tightening up on uninsured motorists driving in Georgia go into effect April 1 for drivers with a second or subsequent suspension during any five-year period: The Department of Motor Vehicle Safety will...
Western General Enters Maryland Auto Market
Mar 8 2005 // Maryland Insurance Commissioner Alfred W. Redmer, Jr. today welcomed to Maryland Western General Insurance Company, a California-domiciled, property and casualty insurer, to the state. Western General will market...
Ga. Authorities Still Looking to Park Tow Truck Operator
Mar 8 2005 // Georgia Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine and Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Chief Dan Flynn announced recently that an arrest warrant has been issued for suspect Russell Lee Scruggs, owner of a Savannah towing...
Progressive Drives Into S.C. Commercial Auto Insurance Market; Signs 430 Agents
Mar 7 2005 // Progressive Insurance’s Drive Group (Drive Insurance) has announced it will offer its commercial auto product in South Carolina through more than 430 agents. Drive(SM) Insurance is The Progressive Group of Insurance...
Travelers Assists Employers Offering Auto, Home Insurance Benefit from Multiple Carriers
Mar 7 2005 // Travelers is making it easier for companies with more than 5,000 employees to offer a choice of providers for auto and homeowners insurance through payroll deduction. A member of St. Paul Travelers, Travelers has dedicated...
Warren Buffett Praises N.J. Auto Insurance Market Turnaround and Outgoing Chief Bakke
Mar 7 2005 // Star mogul Warren E. Buffett loves New Jersey, at least its auto insurance market. In his annual letter to shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. of which he is chairman, Buffett has high praise for the turnaround in the...
